The effectiveness with which an engineering workstation can be used often depends on the user having access to peripheral devices such as printers. If a printer is shared among several workstations, or a printer associated with a given workstation is in need of repair, the user of the workstation might not be able to obtain promptly a printed copy of the image created using the workstation. Frequently, it is preferable to have a prompt printed copy of somewhat inferior quality than wait for access to a printer that is able to provide a copy of higher quality.